Decided to get back in the car this morning and head back
down along the Turnagain Arm and on to Seward and Homer. Another beautiful
drive on the way down – a little rainy but hey, we’re from Seattle, we don’t
let a little rain get in our way.
Pulled into Seward around noon and spent some time at a
wonderful Aquarium/Marine Rescue Center there. Lots of great exhibits and
marine animals. Great underwater viewing areas for the seals, sea lions and salmon.
Once we were done with our tour through that facility, we came outside and it
was a beautiful day. The clouds were completely gone and we had a great lunch
outdoors right on the water.
Craig decided to keep going on to Homer since we were down
this far. It was another 100+ miles but we were in the car and making fairly
good time so he thought it was doable and we could cross that one off our list.
It was a beautiful drive to get there. Both mountain and water scenery. Three
large volcanos in view for part of the trip, breathtaking cliff top views on
the way dropping down into Homer.
Once we got there, we were absolutely captivated. The Homer
spit has the feel of a real fishing village. We spent some time looking around
and decided that we really wanted to spend more than an afternoon there. So we
turned around and went back to get the rv and come back for a few days. By the time we got back to the rv in Anchorage, it was about 11:30 pm. We are pretty much early to bed and early to rise people but this forced us to experience the far north twilight which was quite beautiful and it was barely dark when we pulled in.
First thing the next morning, Craig wanted to get in a round of golf
at the golf course near us in Anchorage before we left. So he got up early in the morning and
golfed 18 holes. He was joined on several of the holes by a momma moose and her
baby but managed to get back in one piece.
So back in the rv and back down the Turnagain Arm for the 3rd
time in as many days. Good thing it’s so beautiful and we enjoyed the
ride/drive each time. We got into Homer late in the early evening. It was much
slower going back with the rv over the mountains than when we did it in the
car. Our reward when we got there was an oceanfront spot for our rv and a great
spot for watching both the beach and the fishing going on. The silvers are
running and the fishing is good for both salmon and halibut so there was lots
of fishing action to watch. I thought that Craig was going to break down and
rent some fishing equipment but the reality that we have a very small
refrigerator in the rv and we couldn’t possibly take home a whole fish kept him
from doing it. He did enjoy many hours of watching though.
The fishing hole has an interesting story. The pool is
artificial, dug out there to attract locals and tourists.
In the spring every year, they stock it with baby salmon (fry) who imprint on
this spot and then return to it when they come back to mate. Seems like a bit
of a dirty trick to me that they tell these salmon to come back here to be
caught in a dead end pool. Oh well, the people who are fishing, the seals, sea otters and
the eagles all like the idea just fine. And it’s interesting to watch the tide
come in and out through the narrow opening that connects it to the sea.
The next day, it was pouring. After enjoying beautiful warm weather the previous days, we were hoping it would happen again but overnight a big storm blew in
and several times we were awakened by the pounding rain on the rv roof. We
still enjoyed our day in Homer getting on the local shuttle and being shown
around the town of Homer and the split and again, watching fishing. We had a yummy seafood chowder lunch and drove out to a local winery where I very much enjoyed a tasting. Their
specialty is fruity wines. I really liked them and bought a few bottles to bring back home.
Waking up the 3rd morning to more rain, we
decided to pull up stakes and move on back north towards the Alaska Hwy which
meant driving back through Anchorage (we didn’t stop this time) and then up
towards Wasilla & Palmer. (No we didn’t see Sarah Pailin but several times
while we were in Anchorage we heard jokes about being able to see Russia.) Once we left the coastal area, the weather cleared up quite a bit and the drive was pleasant.
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